Monthly Archives: December 2024

I’m going to close out the year with a lesson I learned many years ago from a column by Stanley Fish; I believe it was in the Chronicle of Higher Education (which, is, by the way, an essential read for any academic … Continue reading →

I came into my current position as a library leader about four years ago, saying what I’ve always known all good leaders are supposed to say in that situation: “Don’t expect me to swoop in here and starting being disruptive … Continue reading →

The words “simple” and “easy” are not synonyms. A task or process can be simple but not easy, and it might be easy but not simple.  Let me provide a couple of quick examples to illustrate what I mean: Driving … Continue reading →

Ever heard the saying “reality always wins”? I have no idea who coined it, but I first heard that phrase some years ago, and for a long time I found it comforting. Sure, nonsense and denial might prevail for a … Continue reading →

This is one of those conversations that tends to happen between two lobes of my brain – I’ll refer to them as Rick Brain 1 and Rick Brain 2. Here’s how this particular conversation goes; maybe it’s somewhat the same … Continue reading →

When you were a child, there’s a very good chance that you were told by your parents to do something you didn’t want to do. And there’s a very good chance that you asked why you had to do it, … Continue reading →